Light at the End
by esentrik
Summary: Part two of Frozen In Time. Ranger needs Stephanie to help him with some undercover work, and things don't go according to plan. The couple's lives are changed...forever and ever amen. Rating for potental chapters.
1. Will you accept?

I can't do that Tank!" Ranger growled to Tank.

"Ric, you're jeopardizing the entire mission. Three months of work, down the drain. At least ask her!" Tank didn't seem too happy at Ranger, but he kept his voice quiet so that he wouldn't wake Steph.

"Tank, you just don't seem to get it." Ranger face was tense as he said it.

"What don't I get?" Tank straddled the nearest chair backwards, so he could lean on the headrest.

Ranger shook his head. Stephanie looked peaceful asleep in his lap. Her face was battered, and there were stitches just about everywhere, but she looked safe. Looked like she felt safe.

"Ric, what don't I get?" Tank asked again with an amused smile across his chin.

Ranger was caught between a stone and a hard place. Tank figured as much. Stephanie, would once again, be in danger again if Ric went through with this. If he didn't, he would have slaved for three months for nothing.

"I don't think she can handle it." Ranger stated finally to cut through the silence.

"Can't handle it, or you won't let her?" Tank kept pressing questions into Ranger that he didn't want to answer.

"What does it matter? She's not doing it." Ranger's temper was rising quickly, and Tank backed off before Ranger threatened his pay check.

Tank left the room, and stood be Bobby and Lester, who were by the window looking in. The blinds were pulled, but you could hear pretty well through the cheep glass. "He won't do it." Tank muttered and flew out of the hospital.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

I woke up with another headache. They were actually becoming common. The machines were beeping again. I opened one eye, and looked for Ranger. In my line of vision, I couldn't see him. I groaned and rolled my head over to the other side. Ranger was there, staring out at Trenton through the window. He turned and smiled softly.

"What's wrong?" I asked, immediately aware that there was a problem.

"I need to ask you something." He said, and slowly came back towards the bed.

"Ric?" I said in a very tiny, scared wavering voice.

"Shhh." He said. "Babe, I have a job for you."

"I'm not sure I'd be a good distraction." I said.

"Not distraction. Major drug and counterfeit bust." He smiled.

"What would I need to do?" I asked and sat up, whining through the searing pain in my forehead.

"Wear these and pretend to be my wife." Ranger sat on the bed by my feet and pulled out a jewelry box.

I lost all rational thought. The rings were beautiful. The engagement ring had no rocks sticking out of the top. Rather, it had little diamonds in the band itself, which was only about three millimeters thick. There was a plain platinum wedding band that followed. I looked up at Ranger, and he smiled. He reached out and pushed my jaws together.

"Why do you need me?" I asked, feeling like I was floating hundreds of feet off the ground in a dream.

"It's the women who are passing these things out like candy. You'll need to make friends with them, blow up a car, and then we fight about money. They'll pass money and drugs off to you to make you feel better." Ranger was still smiling.

"Then yes, I'll take it."

"Babe, for this to work, were really going to have to get married. I can't just slip a band on your finger. The leader in all of this checks everyone out carefully. We'll assume a fake I.D. once we get into the whole thing, but we are really, really going to have to say our vows."

My heart started beating fast. I was trying to hide it, but the damn machine kept beeping and updating Ranger on my stats. Ranger reached behind me and shut it off, and tucked my hair behind my ear on its return. "You still sure you want to do this?"

I leaned over and I was feeling rather brave. I licked the inside of Ranger's ear, then whispered, "Yes." 


	2. Mamma's Approval

Before I could have said, or done, anything else, Grandma Mazur burst through the door conjoined at the elbow with my mother.

"You have some explaining to do." She hissed.

"What?" I asked and righted myself on the bed so I was no longer in Ranger's lap.

"An old lady can't even go out on the street anymore without being questioned about who her grandbaby's sleeping with now!" Grandma Mazur was hysterical.

Of all the things Grandma Mazur could be upset about, it was who was invited into my bed. And I hadn't even slept with Ranger since... well...

"Morelli's mamma wasn't so happy that you were sleeping with Ranger." Grandma said, arms crossed across her chest and her face twisted.

"I didn't do anything! If it weren't for Morelli, I wouldn't be in this mess!" I said, my voice almost reaching a yell, and lifting my bandaged arm.

The room went dead quiet. Ranger stirred uneasily on the edge of the bed. The bed squeaked, and everyone turned to look at him. "What are you talking about Stephanie?" My mother asked quietly.

"He kidnapped me, mother. He's a pig! Lucky I'm not pressing charges." I said, softer and glanced at Ranger. For a moment, I saw pity.

"Stephanie, I think your bandages are on too tight. Joe stopped by yesterday afternoon and said you weren't feeling right, but this is something else." My mother said and folded her hands in front of her.

I gave her a glazed look. "Joe said he found that horrible Norman Carver holding a knife to your throat. Joe tried to talk him out of it, and just managed to save you before Norman blew up." She took a deep breath and paused to ask, Why me, in her head before continuing". And then I find out that Ranger spent the night here."

"Morelli's no hero." I said and my breath caught again.

"Sweetheart, maybe you should have some time alone to get some sleep and maybe you'll remember it." My mother sent Ranger a death glare, and Ranger obediently stepped outside.

I balled my hand into a fist and smacked it into the palm of the other. The engagement ring jabbed the soft skin, and I immediately pulled back and discreetly slid the hand under my leg. God only knows what an engagement ring would do to this mess.

"Night Sweetheart." My mother said and kissed me on the forehead. Grandma Mazur did the same, but shot me a nasty look. Usually it was Grandma who took my side.

(POV change)

Mrs. Plum pulled the door closed behind her, and looked at Ranger who was sitting against the door watching like a hawk.

"You stay away from my daughter. You'll only hurt her." She said, not looking up to meet his eyes.

"Mrs. Plum..." Ranger started, heartbroken.

She held out her hand, stiff and rigid. "I know you think you're protecting her, but she's big enough to take care of herself. You keep encouraging her to do this bounty hunting crap. If it weren't for you she'd...she'd... she'd be a nice burg housewife to a nice burg man who worked a 9 to 5 desk job. I want to see my daughter grow old and have a husband and kids. She'll never be able to with a job so... repulsive." And with a shudder, she was gone.

Grandma Mazur lingered for a moment. Her head hung low, and in a soft voice. "I believe Steph." She raised her head to look at Ranger. "You have to help her."

Ranger nodded and bit his bottom lip. Mrs. Mazur began to walk down the hall. "Meet you at Stiva's at eight. You explain the ring." She said to him over his shoulder, and then was gone.

Ranger stared at her smaller form. She wasn't the Grandma Mazur who shot through a chicken and into the good china. She was a caring little old lady who was genuinely concerned for her granddaughter. And no surprise, she was taking Stephanie's side.

Ranger pondered whither he should go in a see Steph again or not. He had not counted on her mother in his plan. Maybe she wanted out. Ranger would have been happy to oblige.

Even so, that still left him with a problem. He'd only told Steph that they were drug runners. He didn't dare tell her that they had hacked into the Rangeman system, and that tons of important information was at stake. Particularly a very important set of social security numbers and a few fudged immigration papers.

Ranger sighed and pushed off the wall. With the back of his knucles, he knocked on Stephanie's door. No answer called him in, but the lack of sound let Ranger know she was probably asleep. He opened the door slowly, and she jostled at the sound of the click. But, she was asleep. Quickly, Ranger pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'll be alright babe. Get some sleep." He whispered softly.

She smiled in her sleep, and Ranger rubbed his thumb over the ring he'd given her. He was amazed she was still wearing it. Then, he was gone like a black cat in a dark alley. 


	3. Out of Charater

Grandma Mazur was dressed by five for the seven o'clock viewing. Being as old as she was, she had no where to go and nothing to do: except for poking at the dead and partying at male strip clubs. She was alone in her room. Quietly, she unzipped her purse and dumped the contents out onto her bed.

Three strawberry flavored condoms, hundreds of stray bullets, a can of defense spray, empty pack of chewing gum and a gun to go with the bullets. She lifted up the gun, and licked her finger to wipe off a finger print. She then spent the next half an hour polishing her Glock. A fine piece of machinery it was. And if Ranger didn't have answers, she swore to her self that she'd shot him.

Something deep in her gut told her that the ring was a set up. A prop in something they were doing. Or, maybe a charm to keep Morelli away.

Morelli had been too sweet. That had been his first mistake. He had a boquet of flowers in one hand, and a stuffed bear for Stephanie in the other. He was smiling as he handed them to Ellen. Second mistake, was holding a conversation with Frank. Frank didn't even look at him, and all answers were grunts. Frank Plum wasn't one for small talk, but he openly talked with Morelli and Ranger. Third and final mistake, Joeseph Morelli didn't seem too upset. A tear hadn't fallen down his cheek. If you loved someone the way Joe was playing, he'd had been in tears, and at the hospital in Ranger's place.

Soon enough, six thirty rolled around and Grandma Mazur packed herself in the passenger seat of Betty Sajack's Pontiac. Ranger was standing outside when they arrived, dressed in an appropriate solid black. "You can drop me here." Grandma Mazur pointed to the curb infront of Ranger.

"Some date." She said and parallel parked between a older Cadallic and a Toyota pickup.

"He's my grandaughter's." Grandma Mazur informed, and Betty nodded her head in understanding.

Ranger offered her a fake smile and a nod. But nothing else. No greeting, no handshake, not even a blink of an eye. His face suggested he was all buisness. Grandma Mazur stood infront of him for a few minutes, and then offered to go inside. Again, another nod.

The entered the first room. Not very many people were in there, only a few family members and a few other friends. The family looked torn apart, a mother, a wife and three small children with dirt on their faces. Three boys, suits all alike with holes ripped everywhere, and all sizes too small. The wife wasn't better. No make-up, no jewelery except for the simple silver band symbolizing her marrige. The mother of the decesed was the best off, but she looked drained and broken. Grandma Mazur noted that the casket was bottom-of-the-line.

Ranger made his was to the back, where he and Mrs. Mazur took a seat on a couch. Ranger choked on words. What to say to the grandmother to your make-believe fiance?

"Spit it out." She said, noticing Ranger's unusual trouble.

"It's for a job. A neighborhood of people have deep roots into the drug system, and they're selling it in large amounts. They're also suspect to counterfit twenties." Ranger said in one breath.

"Why Steph?"

"I need a newly wed happy couple. Steph is the only one I think can do this. We have to pull off for a good two weeks, maybe more. I was so into this job, and then Steph disapeared..." Ranger broke off.

Grandma Mazur stared at Ranger for a minute and her left eyebrow twitched. "There's more, isn't there." She asked after a long pause.

Ranger sucked in a deep breath and then began. "Yes. The neighborhood is run by the husbands. They have the connections, and they get the drugs. The wives go out and sell it, because no one will suspect a ditsy housewife to be in possession of ten kilos of pot in their backseat. There are two houses that run the counterfits, and they pass on twenties like a cold. Everyone has connections in that neighbor hood."

With another breath, he started again. "The Rangeman Computer was hacked."

"What danger is in that?" Grandma Mazur asked, dealing strictly business with Ranger.

"They know our clients. They figured out were looking into their business and they're scared. They've got access to everyone's social security numbers and... some of my employee's... legal... documents."

"Forged immigration cards?"

Ranger stared at her for a brief second. How could she possibly know that?

"Yes maam." He said. "Everyone's. Even mine and Stephanie's. And they have pictures of all my staff, except for me and..."

"Steph." Grandma Mazur said and bobbed her head.

"We're the only ones we won't recognise. We were going to set up alternate identities, and play from there. Just a happy little family." Ranger crossed his arms over his chest. "But now, I'm pretty sure she's going to back out."

"Huh!" Grandma Mazur laughed. "That girl has never listened to her mother. When she was little, all we'd hear was Stephanie wash your hands, or Stephanie comb your hair, or Stephanie clean your room, or my favorite, Stephanie you climb on that roof one more time and I will handcuff you to your bed."

Ranger smiled, and Grandma Mazur continued. "She always climbed to the roof one more time even though her mother told her not to. That child was as stubborn as a mule, and still is. You know how long Ellen's been trying to get her to quit that job of hers?" Before Ranger had time to answer, Grandma Mazur jumped back in. "Since the day she got it. Three years ago."

Ranger figured as much. "Now, if you excuse me, I have to visit the diseased." She sat up and brushed the folds out of her skirt.

Ranger sat, blank faced. She didn't seem phased the least bit about the trouble Stephanie could be in. Stephanie suddenly jumped into his mind, and he stood up quickly remembering that it had been almost six hours since he'd left her.

The drive to the hospital wretched his guts. He didn't feel right about any of this. Hurting Stephanie. Disobeying her mother. And he had the ungodly urge to punch Morelli's nose in. Finally, the drive was over, and Ranger hit the ground running into the building.

The door to Stephanie's room was cracked. He remembered closing it, and the nursing staff closed it for patients privacy. Hushed voices flowed out into the hall.

"Stephanie, honey, it'll be better off this way. I promise."

"No it won't Mom. You're telling me to just, give up, my life to be a traditional Burg Housewife. I can't do that Mom."

"You can't, or you won't."

"I can't. I can't just walk out of Ranger's life like that. Vinnie needs me, too. And I'd be leaving Lula and Connie too. I like my job Mom." Her words rung fresh in Ranger's ears.

"Vinnie can find another bounty hunter. You wouldn't be leaving Lula and Connie, either."

"You're leaving out Ranger."

"Ranger's a big boy. Handsome, too. I'm sure he probably has a girlfriend, baby. Did you ever think of that?"

"He wouldn't, or he would have told me."

"Everyone has their secrets. I don't want to see you hurt, like what happened with Dickie."

"MOM! I learned from Dickie, if anything. Ranger isn't him, or anything close." Clearly, Stephanie's divorce was still a hot spot.

"You hardly know Ranger."

"I know alot about him."

"How old is he?" Her mother asked in a mocking tone.

Stephanie went blank.

"Steph?"

"I don't know that. I don't know his birthday or his favorite ice cream flavor. I don't even know if he eat's ice cream. But mom, he's not going to be playing hide the sausage with anyone."

"I know you think this is best, but you're not thinking rationally and..."

Stephanie cut her off. "I'm thinking rationally enough, and I think that maybe you should just leave."

"Steph..."

"Go, Mom. You're not making my life any easier, and I'm tired. Just go." Stephanie's voice was breaking.

Ranger viewed this as his cue, and sunk into the shadows of the hallway until Stephaine's mother emerged from the room. Once she was in the elevator, Ranger slowly got to Steph's door which had only been pulled to a crack again. He knocked on it with the back of his hand.

She sniffled, and then asked, "Who's there?"

"It's me, Babe." He said into the door.

A little enthusiasm returned to her voice. "Ranger."

He leaned into the door and it opened. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. Stephanie's curtains were pulled open, and the room was only lit by the light of the other buildings. "Hey." He said softly and crossed the room.

"How long were you out there?" She asked him between sniffles.

"Long enough. Look, Babe, I'm sorry and I shouldn't have..." He began, but Stephanie reached out with her finger and pressed it to his lip.

"This is between me and my mother. You have nothing to do with it."

Ranger smiled, and through her tears, she did too. Stephanie pulled away from him, and slid over on the bed, wanting Ranger to catch the hint and get on it too. He slid up behind her and cuddled her until her breathing slowed and her body turned to mush in his hands.

A heart pendant around a teady bear's neck caught the light from the office building. 


	4. Identity

There was a light tapping on Ranger's skull. That's what woke him up.

"What are you still doing here?" Tank asked in a hushed voice. His head was twisted and his arm was raised in a fist, knocking against Ranger's forehead.

"Hey man." Ranger said, blinking at the light.

The room was still dark, but the early morning was fast approaching. Stephanie, still asleep, stirred against his chest and a tiny moan escaped her. Ranger felt horrible. Her face was bruised, with stitches above her eyebrow that ran the length of her face. Rings of finger-like bruising crawled up her arms, and there were two bloody rings. Ranger had seen a lot, done a lot, and felt a lot, but looking at Stephanie made him sick to his stomach. There was something he should have done to prevent it.

"Ranger?" She mumbled, stretching the word and nuzzling deeper into his chest.

"Hmm?" Ranger replied.

"I want to go home." She said in her sleep.

Tank snorted in the corner. "Looks like our old Bombshell's back."

Stephanie shot him a look out of the corner of one eye. "Peanut gallery." She snorted back.

"Be nice." Ranger chuckled and peeled himself away from Stephanie.

In one fluid motion, he was gone. He returned a moment later, a clipboard in one hand and a bag of cheese doodles in the other. "Eat, and then you can go home."

The bag of doodles threw across the room and landed in Stephanie's lap. In a matter of minutes, the bag of cheese doodles turned into just a bag, and Stephanie sat up and waited for the chart to be signed. Ranger watched her with amusement. She was sitting straight, and if she were a dog, her tail would have been wagging at full speed.

"Ok kiddo, I'm going to sign this if you promise me that you will not, under any circumstances, go to work for a week. No strenuous activities..." The doctors glance changed from Stephanie to Ranger. "No sex, for a week."

Tank suppressed a laugh. Ranger's hand traveled down his back and touched the butt of his gun, as a treat. It didn't help much, and Stephanie sent him another death glare. She was realizing her power over him.

"Any questions, call me at any time." He said and handed Ranger a prescription.

"Ready?" Ranger asked.

Stephanie nodded and stood up, only to fall back down. She wasn't ready for the pain that had followed. The bruises on her legs made them sore. Ranger was on her the instant she fell, holding out his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he lifted her off the bed.

Tank headed towards a shiny, gleaming black Porsche, and Ranger headed in the other direction to a black Bronco. It had bug lights on the top.

"I thought Abruzzi torched that truck." Stephanie noted.

"Cars can be replaced." He smiled and started the engine.

The growl that the Bronco produced was much different than the one that the Buick made. The Bronco sounded more hi-tech. The Buick sounded like it was about to fall apart. Stephanie buckled herself in.

"There are a few, arrangements, I need to finish up, and then..." Ranger's eyes dropped from Stephanie's face to the ring, and her's followed.

"Then...?"

"Then we go to work, unless you don't want to. You can back out at any time, I'm not going to push you or anything..."

"Shh. I like this song." She said, to end Ranger's rambling. She never would have thought you could put Ranger and ramble in the same sentence.

Actually, she had never heard the song on the radio. It was some teeny-bobber song, singing about someone stealing another girls boyfriend or something. "My daughter was on radio control." Ranger said.

"I thought your daughter lived in Miami." She said and left it open for an answer.

"She did." Was all the answer she got.

Stephanie didn't feel right pushing the subject, so she let it drop. "You don't really like this song do you?" He asked and switched the channel.

"Never heard it in my life. You were rambling." She laughed.

He made a turn off a block from Haywood, where his office was. There were some residential homes, all normal sized. He pulled up infront of one and parallel parked between a massive Silverado and a Corvette Stingray that couldn't have been any blacker.

"Need to finish our personalities and then we can go 'move in'" He bent his fingers to simulate the quotes.

Stephanie nodded, and tried to match Ranger stride for stride. Ranger noticed she was having a problem walking still, so he slowed down. When they reached the door, it opened. A friendly face stared out at us. Stephanie didn't recognize him, but he recognized her. "Stephanie... Ranger... you're late." He said in a cheerful voice.

"Sorry. There were a few... minor... complications." Ranger chose his words carefully.

"Ok, I've got everything set up. All I need is some names and a occupation and you're set." He sat Stephanie and Ranger down on a deep leather sofa and sat across from him and folded his hands in his lap.

"Carlos." Ranger said. "Babe, come up with a name that you'll answer to. We're making a entire fake personality here."

"Rachel." Stephanie said enthusiastically and it made everyone smile.

"Last name?" The man asked and punched the names through a program.

"I had Garcia in mind. If, that's ok by you." Ranger turned to Stephanie.

"Rachel Garcia." Stephanie nodded in approval.

"Want a middle name?" She was asked.

"Ashley." Stephanie said, as if she had already planned having another name since she was born.

"Diego." Ranger said after Stephanie.

"Okay. One Carlos Diego Garcia and one Rachel Ashley Garcia coming up." The man said with a punch of a button and a grin. A printer started up in the corner of the room, and Stephanie jumped.

Ranger took her hand and set it in his lap. He was handed a card and Stephanie was handed a card that looked like a drivers license. Stephanie read hers under her breath. "Hometown: Scottsdale, Arizona. DOB: 06/13/76." She looked up. "I'm 29?"

"I'm 33. What's it to ya?" Ranger looked from his card to hers.

"Born in Scottsdale, Arizona? I've never even heard of Scottsdale until... well Vinnie wanted to move there but..."

"It's in the middle of Arizona. Hotter than hell." The man said and smiled again. He was finding Stephanie amusing. He always asked Ranger why he still helped her, but now he realized she really was one in a trillion.

"Any other questions?" He asked.

Stephanie shook her head. "Give me a day or two to really get all the background information set up."

Ranger nodded and got up to leave. He held out a hand to Stephanie. Ranger caught the other man staring, and slid his hand into Stephanie's back pocket. She tried to shove him away playfully, but he only stepped a few steps away from Stephanie, bringing her with him. 


	5. Tiger

Alright, I have made an attempt to refresh myself with my plot and stuff and am ready to give this another shot. I will most-likely contradict myself sometime in the future, and if so, please forgive me. I lost myself so completely in my plot, before the plot edit, that I'm not even sure what I've done and still need to do. Please bear with me. - Anyway, since this was started after the release of book ten, I have since then read Eleven. So, even though it may be odd, I am going to include some of the events of Eleven and stray away from the thoughts of ten. I have had half-hearted thoughts of re-doing Frozen in Time to match, but, maybe I ought to finish it first!

We both angled into his car at the curb, and Ranger began to drive. I kept glancing sideways glances at him. I wasn't even aware that I was doing it, mostly. Finally, at a stop light, he caught me and said, "Cut it out."

He said it in a playful, non-threatening tone. I laughed. "Seriously, I can't help it."

He turned to me, smiled and then revved the engine as the light changed.

The Porsche angled into the parking lot of my apartment a few short moments later. "Do you feel up to looking for a house later?" Ranger asked.

"Huh?" I said and made a funny squinty-eyed face.

"Well, as a newly wed couple, we ought to think about moving into a house." He said. "This will give us a way to meet the people of the block. See their faces, see their reactions. And, we can get a feel for the married life."

"Very funny." I said, and got out of the car. I was still sore, and I grimaced slightly.

"Are you sure?" Ranger asked again. Damn, he'd seen.

"Nothing a Tylenol can't fix." I said through a smile.

He forced a smile and got out of his seat. He locked the car and assisted me up to my apartment safely. My apartment was awfully quiet, being as Rex was probably still in his parent's guest bedroom. The only thing that was disturbed was the dust on my kitchen counter. On it was a bouquet of flowers in my only vase. There was a note pushed between the pedals of the tallest flower.

I looked at Ranger, suggesting a question like, "Are these from you?"

He nodded his head "no." I took the note and opened it. It was folded into fourths, like a note you would pass in math class as a teenager.

"Cupcake, I am sorry. Maybe we can still make things work. I didn't have a choice. Give me a chance to explain. Please? Call me. Bob misses you. Love, Morelli."

I looked at it, re-read it, then tore it into four equal sized pieces. "I want restraining order against him." I said aloud to myself.

"I can arrange that…" Ranger said from behind me.

"Naw. I need to do it." I sighed, then retreated to my room.

I pulled open the door to my closet and looked in. I had a variety of shirts to wear. My closet was semi-sorted into categories. There were work shirts, which were all black and had Rangeman embroidered on the pocket. Then there were my mother-approved shirts. Not all of them, of course, were approved by my mother, but they were the shirts that I would be allowed to wear to dinner and not be ridiculed in. Lastly were my slut shirts. Okay, they weren't really slut shirts, but they ran pretty close. They were too short, stretched to tight over my chest, dipped to low, had holes in embarrassing spots, and were not to be worn in public.

I never heard him come up behind me, but he did, and he wrapped me in his big arms round the waist and rested his chin on the top of my head. I didn't think he was that much taller than me, but apparently he was.

He grabbed a shirt from my slut-side and held it out. It was red and shiny, and dipped so low in the back that I wouldn't be able to wear a bra. "I like this one." He stated.

"No." I made an attempt to grab it from him, but he still had me encased with one arm. "I'm going to try to make a good impression from these ladies."

I made another grab for the garment, and he pulled it away again. "You aren't helping. You're giving me a headache. Go." I said, and freed myself. I pointed my arm stiffly towards the door.

I choose the classic black shirt and blue jeans. Actually, I didn't choose. I didn't have a choice. The pant's were the only ones that would cover over the ACE bandage on my left ankle, and the black shirt sorta hid the bruises on my arms.

I stood in the shower for what seemed like a record-breaking short time. I was a little creeped out about having Ranger in the next room. I know he's the good guy, but I just wasn't feeling trustworthy right now.

I dressed in about the same time, spending a minimal amount of time on my hair and an extreme amount of time on my makeup, making a fruitless attempt to cover my bruises.

This time, I saw him coming. I saw his figure coming towards me in the mirror. "Just making sure you hadn't passed out or anything."

I got the fact that he was teasing me. "Sticks and stones, Ric."

I didn't mean to say it. It just sorta slipped. Ric came easier than Ranger. But, he had always been Ranger. I glanced at him. He didn't look dumbfounded. He just looked, amused.

"What?"

"The last time I was called Ric, my baby sister wanted a lick off my ice cream cone." He smiled.

I turned, finally done. I headed back through my bedroom, with Ranger by my side. "So, have you always been Ranger?"

"Mostly."

"Mostly, how?"

He looked at me, amused again. Like there was something he was about to say, but wasn't sure how to say it. "Since I was 14."

The amused smile was still in place. I felt brave enough to ask another question. "And before you we're 14?"

He stopped at the stairwell. "Everyone called me Tiger. Something my abuello started, and then everyone did. Then it just stuck."

That ended my little questioning session. I chewed on my new information for a while, while Ranger drove us to our new neighborhood.

"Remember, it's Carlos, Babe." Ranger said, pulling into a little housing development. It looked nice enough. Little yards were enclosed by little picket fences, all clean and white washed. Houses were kept neat, with neatly trimmed trees in front and very well-kept gardens pushed to the front wall. Occasionally there was a children's ball or bike in the driveway, but mostly there were top-dollar, gasoline-guzzling machines parked in front to be the envy of the neighbors.

The stencil American home.

We turned around a corner, and almost immediately came to a stop in front of a "For Sale" sign. A car was already in the drive and the door was opened a crack.

Ranger turned to me and was about to say something, but I opened up faster. "Let's go get um, Tiger."

"Smartass," Ranger said under his breath, and turned off the engine. 


End file.
